Artoo-Detoo (R2-D2) (With Extension Arm) - OTC - Vintage

Celebrate the legendary Star Wars trilogy that changed the universe forever, with The Original Trilogy Collection. This collection brings to life the incredible story of good versus evil that captured our imagination and took us to a galaxy far, far away. The finest recreations of the iconic Star Wars heroes and villains are back with incredible detail and premium features to commemorate each epic tale in the Original Trilogy: A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, and Return of the Jedi. And, as a tribute to the dedication of Star Wars fans everywhere, we are re-releasing elements of the original packaging that harken back to the creation of Star Wars action figures, which began over 25 years ago with the Original Trilogy. May the Force be with you!

It’s common knowledge that R2-D2 is the Swiss army knife of astromech droids. Because if this Hasbro either doesn’t know how to properly approach the character when it comes time to develop a new action figure for the toy line, or they try to squeeze in too many things that ultimately do not work that well with each other. By the time The “Vintage” Original Trilogy Collection came around, Hasbro knew that R2-D2 would absolutely have to be one of the 12 action figures that would receive premium treatment. Because the 12 characters would be split evenly across three films, some characters needed to be placed on card backs that didn’t truly match their source. As much as it would have been fantastic to get R2-D2 on a Star Wars card back, the figure can convert to a basic Episode IV R2-D2. But technically, 2004’s VOTC Artoo-Detoo (R2-D2) (With Extension Arm) is sourced from Star Wars Episode VI: Return Of The Jedi. One included accessory seals this deal. The buzz saw was only seen in Return Of The Jedi as R2-D2 cut the Rebels out of the Ewok trap right after Chewbacca was only thinking about his stomach.

Artoo-Detoo (R2-D2) (With Extension Arm) comes with four accessories, five if you count his removable third leg. These include two removable panels and two utility tools, one of which is the buzz saw. One panel is flat and smooth which will allow you to configure the astromech in the simplest way possible. Then the second removable panel included is “opened” and contains holes to accept the two utility tools. The tools can be displayed singly or doubly thanks to proper spacing and excellent design. And as we’ve mentioned, the third leg is removable so you can display R2-D2 standing on two legs or in a relaxed state rolling on all three. The sculpt of Artoo-Detoo (R2-D2) (With Extension Arm) is pretty darn good. Hasbro has brought R2-D2 to an all-new level of authenticity. The panels have never looked better and the blue and silver details that accent the primarily white body have been done so expertly. Perhaps the biggest enhancement is hydraulic wires added to the outer feet. Instead of being sculpted onto to the feet and painted, they’re actually separately sculpted “accessories” (for lack of a better term) glued into place which gives R2-D2 extra texture and more importantly improved authenticity.

One area of R2-D2 (as a character) that Hasbro seems to avoid like the plague is his dome. They’re hell bent of decorating the dome in vac-metalized chrome/silver alloy. It’s not like they haven’t gone with the correct brushed nickel look instead. If you recall, 1999’s The Power Of The Force R2-D2 (With Holographic Princess Leia) came with the duller “brushed nickel” silver/gray color. So why so many years later did they return to the vac-metalized process. Had Artoo-Detoo (R2-D2) (With Extension Arm) been decorated with a properly colored dome, this would be a remarkably impressive version of him. But we don’t think that you should be able to see your reflection in R2-D2’s dome in general. The good news is that they have a great base figure to make new and better versions of R2-D2 for the future. Artoo-Detoo (R2-D2) (With Extension Arm) is a great update to our favorite astromech droid. But you need to know tat it’s not the definitive update. As with any of the figures in The “Vintage” Original Trilogy Collection, it’s the packaging that saves all of these figures from certain doom. Artoo-Detoo (R2-D2) (With Extension Arm) looks fantastic on this card back. And the Return Of The Jedi source is accurate. Overall, this is a fun release.